Tuesday 15 November 2022 08:29 PM Rick Scott will challenge Mitch McConnell for Republican Senate leader trends now

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Rick Scott on Tuesday announced he will challenge Mitch McConnell in Wednesday's leadership election for Senate Republicans.

The Florida Republican made his announcement to his colleagues during a closed-door luncheon for senators on Capitol Hill. 

Scott is hoping to marshall GOP anger at their failure to win the Senate majority into a win over McConnell, the longtime Republican leader. His odds are seen as slim.

Democrats sealed their majority rule of the Senate over the weekend when their candidates won key races in Nevada and Arizona.

Republicans are playing the blame game in the aftermath with McConnell and Scott, who ran the Senate's campaign arm, bickering over who is to blame for the GOP's failure.

Scott is backed by former President Donald Trump, who has long despised McConnell and blamed him for Republican losses in last week's midterm election.

McConnell's team claims he has the votes for Senate GOP Leader all tied up.